Impact Stories from Youth Engagement Policy Area
Fellow speaks on students’ reproductive health in TV interview
Fellow(s): Linah Anyango
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2019
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2019 fellow of Kenya Linah Anyango was a guest on KTN News
Kenya, speaking about the need to focus on girls’ reproductive
health education to improve school attendance and their
participation in STEM fields. The interview was aired on KTN’s Her
Standards show, a platform that shares conversations on gender
equality and women’s empowerment.
Linah is a biology and chemistry educator, EdTech coach and
STEM advocate. In the interview, Linah shared that in order to
make STEM more inclusive for girls, their sexual and reproductive
health must be addressed. In Kenya, an estimated 13,000 girls
drop out of school every year due to pregnancy; one in every five girls between nine and 19 is either a young
mother or pregnant. “Unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases have derailed lives of many
promising future engineers or scientists that this country greatly needs,” said Linah. She called for a greater
effort to implement reproductive health policies and sexual education curriculum that will help keep girls in
school. “Provision of age-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education, as part of a wider life-skill and
empowerment learning package will help guide their decisions, with parents and teachers playing their
collective role. Only then, can the efforts to encourage interest in STEM pay dividends,” she said.
Report Date...: 5/10/21
Fellows share advice for girls in STEM at UNDP event
Fellow(s): Maral Hudaybergenova, Shodiyabegim Bakhtiyorzoda, Mahinakhon Suleymanova
Country: Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
Cohort: 2016, 2017, 2018
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Last month, fellows Maral Hudaybergenova (Turkmenistan, 2018), Shodiyabegim Bakhtiyorzoda (Uzbekistan, 2016) and Mahinakhon Suleymanova (Tajikistan, 2017) were featured speakers at a webinar meant to engage and inspire girls interested in tech throughout Central Asia. The event was sponsored by the United Nations Development Programme as well as STEM4ALL, a non-profit that offers STEM education to K-12 students.
During the session, the fellows were joined by more than 150 women and girls from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The webinar kicked-off with a group discussion on how women and girls are overcoming personal and professional obstacles and succeeding in STEM fields: “I focused on the fact that achieving gender equality requires the engagement of not only women but also men, as it’s everyone’s responsibility,” said Maral. “It’s not about men versus women, it’s all about giving everyone a fair opportunity.” After, the group moved to breakout rooms that were divided by field of interest, where the fellows spoke about both job opportunities as well as the gender barriers and challenges within tech sectors. The event concluded with the panelists sharing free resources for girls and women in STEM. “All of us were trying to inspire girls to not be afraid of pursuing their dream job in spite of stereotypes,” said Maral. “And the most impactful thing for me was the fact that three of five speakers were TechWomen fellows.”
Report Date...: 5/3/21
Fellow featured in UNICEF spotlight
Fellow(s): Noella Nibakuze
Country: Rwanda
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2018 fellow Noella Nibakuze was recently featured in a UNICEF spotlight highlighting her work at MASS Design Group as well as her commitment to uplifting women and girls in her community. The video was a part of UNICEF Rwanda’s Women in STEM series, a campaign that amplifies successful women in STEM fields in Rwanda. Noella is an architect and design associate MASS, working to empower communities through using local and sustainable materials and uplifting their economies.
In the video, Noella explained that her passion for architecture began at an early age: “I imagined myself building skyscrapers, and it really thrilled me to do something so beautiful,” she said. When Noella began exploring a career in architecture, however, she found that she was outnumbered by men: “The main challenge I faced is when I realized the lack of women in the profession itself,” she said. “I really needed the perspective of someone like me.” Noella also shared her perspective on gender equity, and her advice for girls in STEM fields: “I believe a team is more productive and more creative when you have men and women working together. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice on your career. And when you succeed, remember young girls – you can be their mentor.”
Read More »Report Date...: 5/3/21
Fellow’s students present projects to King and Queen of Jordan
Fellow(s): Ala’a Agha Karss
Country: Jordan
Cohort: 2019
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
In 2019, founder of Superiors Tech Hub and 2017 fellow Ala’a Agha Karss
collaborated with Princess Taghrid Institute for Development and Training
to design an immersive tech and business training for rural youth in
Jordan. For two months, Alaa’s project, “Productive Youth,” trained its 35
participants in design thinking, digital marketing, storytelling and more,
guiding them on how to create businesses for local and handmade
products.
Last month, Princess Taghrid Institute organized an exhibition to
showcase the students’ projects and products to King Abdullah II bin Al-
Hussein and Queen Rania Al-Abdullah. There, the King and Queen walked
through the exhibit, speaking to Alaa’s students about their training and
seeing their handicrafts and products on display. “I personally witnessed a
long journey for the students, a journey of self-development and creating
their products with unmatched determination,” said Ala’a.
Report Date...: 5/3/21
Fellow’s project AfChix expands reach with USAID funding
Fellow(s): Houda Chakiri
Country: Morocco
Cohort: 2012
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2012 fellow Houda Chakiri is a board member and project coordinator for AfChix, an initiative that addresses the digital gender divide through digital skills trainings, supporting women-led enterprises and advocating for digital inclusion. The initiative – already named a round one winner in 2018 – was recently named a round three winner of the Women Connect Challenge, a USAID-funded challenge that solicits global solutions that transform the ways women access and use technology.
Round three of the challenge, which focused on scale, replicability and private sector partnerships supporting emerging technologies, awarded four initiatives that are advancing women’s digital development. The AfChix project, “Scaling up Women-Led Community Networks for Women’s Prosperity,” will work with community networks in Kenya, Morocco, Namibia and Senegal to harness the power of digital technologies, partnerships and collaborations for the prosperity of women. “We will empower underserved women communities to use technology to improve their livelihoods and small businesses,” said Houda, who will work as Morocco’s project coordinator to identify and customize digital skills and literacy training programs for women. The digital training will be delivered via MOOCs (Massively Open Online Courses) in order to reach the most women in Africa, and will focus on using smartphones, digital marketing, working with online customers and more. “We hope to reach one million women aged 18 and above to strengthen their participation in the digital society,” says Houda.
Report Date...: 4/26/21
Fellow(s): Gisele Beatrice Sonfack
Country: Cameroon
Cohort: 2016
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
2016 fellow Gisele Beatrice Sonfack was recently named a recipient of the 2021 Schlumberger Faculty for the Future Fellowship, a program that supports women from developing countries to pursue advanced graduate degrees in STEM fields at leading universities abroad. Gisele is a researcher, assistant professor and founder of WENTECH, an initiative that empowers young girls ages 13 to 18 with STEM skills through workshops, conferences and events.
Gisele has begun two years of postdoctoral research at France’s Université d’Orléans, studying at its engineering facility, Polytech Orléans. There, she will work on developing an intelligent electricity grid that can identify the consumer use on an electrical network in order to provide optimal management to both energy suppliers and consumers. Gisele reflected on her accomplishment in a recent post, saying, “This is an opportunity to tell all those who follow me that anything is possible for those who have the will and the commitment. Believe in ourselves.”
Report Date...: 4/26/21
Fellow recognized for bringing free courses to Kyrgyz students
Fellow(s): Gulzire Minbaeva
Country: Kyrgyzstan
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
After visiting Khan Academy HQ during TechWomen 2018, fellow Gulzire Minbaeva maintained her connection with the academy’s internal communications officer, becoming an official language advocate for the academy when she returned home to Kyrgyzstan. Since then, Gulzire and her team of project managers, proofreaders, methodologists and over 200 volunteers have worked to translate Khan Academy courses, empowering students to reach their full potential by providing them with effective learning opportunities.
Gulzire, now the official representative of Khan Academy in Kyrgyzstan, was featured in an article this month from Limon.Kg, where she was interviewed about her work as an education advocate. “There is an acute shortage of resources in the Kyrgyz language in our country,” she said. “This became especially noticeable during the pandemic, when everyone switched to online learning.” Gulzire and her team have worked to translate 250 video courses to Kyrgyz, available for free to students throughout Kyrgyzstan. By September, she hopes to have published 2,000. “I want to revolutionize the education system of Kyrgyzstan,” she said.
Report Date...: 4/19/21
TechWomen announces virtual delegations
Fellow(s): TechWomen announces virtual delegations
Country: Cameroon, Palestinian Territories
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Each year the TechWomen program has the opportunity to continue knowledge-sharing and deepen exchange through delegation trips, traveling to two TechWomen program countries to strengthen an international network of women in STEM fields, inspire women and girls and create exchange between the United States and TechWomen program countries.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the TechWomen community has shown that connection, professional development and mentorship can thrive in a virtual setting. IIE is excited to facilitate additional learning and exchange through its first-ever virtual delegations to the Palestinian Territories and Cameroon, two regions IIE has not had the opportunity to visit. In May, a small group of TechWomen mentors will participate in high-impact fellow-led events in the Palestinian Territories including a STEM learning event and a workshop with women entrepreneurs. In June, mentors will join Cameroonian fellows in their interactive and engaging events centered on robotics with young students and small group career-sharing sessions with university students.
Report Date...: 4/5/21
Fellows and mentors collaborate for TIKE webinar
Fellow(s): Imene Henni Mansour, Celia Ouabas, Katy Dickinson (mentor) and Jessica Dickinson Goodman (mentor)
Country: Algeria, United States
Cohort: 2019
Policy Area(s): Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
During TechWomen 2019, team Algeria created TIKE (Teacher’s Initiative for Kids Education), their action plan that addressed the country’s high student dropout rate through supporting educators and students. TIKE did not win a seed grant, but fellows Imene Henni Mansour and Celia Ouabas were undeterred, continuing to develop the project with support from their Impact Coach Katy Dickinson. TIKE launched in 2020, hosting workshops for schoolteachers themed on supporting Algeria’s students.
TIKE has continued its work in 2021, holding events for parents that explore ways to support children. Their latest webinar, “Academic success from the parent and child perspectives,” invited Katy and her daughter, TechWomen Impact Coach Jessica Dickinson Goodman, to share their perspectives on success and how parents can support their children in academics and beyond. During the talk, Katy explained that parents must actively work to not impose their own fears on their children’s potential, instead instilling in them a sense of ability and independence. Jessica agreed, saying “Academic success, namable achievements and titles are useful only in places where they can help you reach your goals. They don’t have intrinsic value to me — they have utilitarian value.” Imene and Celia will continue to host conversations that help Algerian parents, students and teachers: “We very much hope that the whole interview will help our audience of parents and teachers be more understanding towards children, and give the right support they need to help leverage their potential in the best environment possible,” they said.
Report Date...: 3/29/21
Fellow shares entrepreneurial journey in State Department talk
Fellow(s): Lindiwe Matlali
Country: South Africa
Cohort: 2017
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
This week, 2017 fellow of Lindiwe Matlali was interviewed by Molly Kress of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, speaking about her work, her TechWomen experience and her advice for entrepreneurs. The Instagram Live conversation was part of ECA’s Inside Exchanges – Women’s History Month series that features exchange alumna who are making a global impact.
Lindiwe is the founder and CEO of Africa Teen Geeks, Africa’s largest computer science academy dedicated to teaching underserved communities within South Africa and beyond. During South Africa’s COVID-19 lockdown, Lindiwe and her team launched STEM Lockdown Digital School, hiring 150 teachers to work on the free virtual learning program that ultimately reached over 500,000 children. Africa Teen Geeks is currently planning its expansion to Argentina as well as developing their partnership with South Africa’s Department of Basic Education that will implement ATG’s curriculum in schools: “Every child irrespective of their background will be able to access the curriculum,” she said.
Lindiwe also spoke about her TechWomen experience and how she used her mentorship experience to network, facilitate future projects and expand her impact. “I believe in having strong relationships with other women, especially those that have paved the way,” Lindiwe said. She concluded by sharing a Zulu saying: “You can only get directions from those who have already walked the path.”
Report Date...: 3/22/21
